There are a number of reasons why county leaders should prioritize pipeline safety. First of all, an enormous amount of pipeline infrastructure crosses through a large number of counties. Second, county officials and planning staff make local land use and development decisions that can interact with existing or planned pipeline infrastructure. Third, local governments are usually the first to respond to pipeline emergencies and are usually the first place citizens turn to with pipeline questions.

NACo recently released the Recommended Pipeline Safety Practices for Local Governments fact sheet to introduce PIPA's Baseline (BL) Recommended Practices that are specific to local governments. The fact sheet defines each of PIPA's BL Recommended Practices for local governments and offers corresponding resources and suggestions to support implementation of each practice.